Brick by Brick: Rebuilding the Broken

When you lose a loved one, there are no words to describe the many facets of what you are going through, and how that impacts the rest of your life. After the initial days of loss so much of what you do only happens by routine, totally unaware of anything surrounding you except the gaping hole left staring you in the face. The shock has settled deeper in your soul and you may remember to drink if you are thirsty, you may try to peck at the food placed before you, and you may crawl into bed because you must get up again tomorrow. You try to resume a semblance of life. How it affects you may be so different than other members of your family, or anyone you know who has been where you are now. Fresh grief is like a candle, or a flower. The way we react, respond, and who we become has so many variables. Some seem to find their way quickly into a different sort of who they used to be. Others may have numerous reasons for not being able to pick up the pieces as gallantly....

How often we hear the line - It must have gotten lost in the mail ... At times it seems like a joke - Yah, right. You wouldn't have sent it at all if I didn't call you again to ask for it; As we hang up the phone, seething with anger at the offense. (or is that just me?) But then there are times when the postal carrier brings such delightful news from that loved one so far away. Brightening our day so, filling our hearts with joy to know that they are safe and well, and very soon they will be home again. These days, the post office doesn't get used as often with e-mails, texting, face timing, and so many other ways to communicate with the world around us. Yet speech is what sets us apart from the animal kingdom. I have yet to see a baboon create a lovely poem. When I mention the phrase lovely poem , I am sure several of my readers can recall a line or two from their favorite author. The words we use each day have a great impact on what we become. Just saying ...

Ever notice how certain remarks or lingo seem to span the ages and we forget how they came to be? Some may seem silly, yet they become useful in certain situations. Take the phrase "Can you dig it?"   - has that person really asked if you are capable of using a shovel to dredge up that new band playing for New Year's Eve? Then if you could scoop the drummer, bass guitarist, lead guitar, saxophone and violinist with a large enough shovel - what would you do next? Absurd, you say? Of course! So let's go back to the phrase and see what's going down! Okay, now I'm on a roll , there's no stopping me, I'm just winging it ..... (Sorry, I digress. Puns definitely intended today.)  The phrase "Can you dig it?" is most commonly associated with the late 1960's and 70's Woodstock era and movies from the USA. But what does it mean? Digging far enough back in time, it comes from the Gaelic An dtuigeann tú?  - which means Do you un...

A Man Healed at the Pool of Bethesda  A fter this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  2  Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep  Gate  a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  3  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  4  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  5  Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  6  When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been  in that condition  a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” 7  The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am comi...

Most people wouldn't give a second thought to a Monarch on the ground during the last dregs of summer. But then again, I am not most people. In certain circles a butterfly sighting might bring a wee bit of interest. Nature lovers, little children and puppies, tree huggers, photography buffs, and the group who no one ever wishes to belong, any of us who grieve a loved one. The butterfly becomes a symbol of something greater than we can see with our finite eyes. Many funeral homes use it as a logo, to try and soften the reason we attend. Absolutely nothing can soften the grief we feel. The time spent planning these things are done in dull shock, barely aware of anything except the gaping hole in our hearts. But eventually, as time passes and the gaping wound builds scar tissue, we can see how a butterfly does bring a small bit of hope to a bleeding heart. The funny little striped caterpillar eats as much as it possibly can before the magic begins. He can not stay a cat...

It's a warm and peacefully quiet Monday afternoon. You decide today is a great day to go shopping at your local discount store. Thinking it's hot enough that all the activity will be splashing away in a pool somewhere. Anywhere. Away from you, anyhow. Life is different now. Crowds of people no longer feel invigorating. In fact, more than a very small group of close friends or family, is nothing short of draining. The simplest way to cope is to avoid them. But still, the world revolves around get-togethers. Celebrations are dull at times, harsh even. Holidays of any sort are painful. Another sharp reminder that someone you love can no longer brighten the room. Their chair remains empty. Sacred, somehow. OK, FOCUS. You are parking the car. Don't run over the little old lady shuffling across to the cart returns. Put your blinker on so the red jalopy knows you are actually turning here.  Yes! You scored the parking spot closest to the exit, making it easier ...

 I am going to take you on a tour of gardens. A walk through someone else's garden is usually a delight. But this time, the paths we will tread upon may seem similar to the rocky ledges we intrepidly scaffold every day. Listen closely to the voices heard in gardens of long ago to reveal a place in our own souls we may have forgotten. In the first garden we are traveling today, you may recall as one of history's most famous garden of all. This is the garden of Eden, the home of Adam and Eve. It was a place of beauty and perfection, until darkness knocked and humanity open the door. The promise of God was to be able to walk with Him daily, enjoying the splendor we can only imagine. However, another promise was given, which make many shake their heads in wonder at the reason why. Why would a loving God create humans in a perfect state, living in a perfect world, only to give them a chance to lose it all? As humans, in retrospect, we can mostly see that it wa...